Top 10 Weirdest Olympic sports of 2016 that are Surprising!

With everything nice and sweet, there are also things which are weird and super bizarre. Something like that also happens at the Olympic games. Along with super duper athletic games, there is also a list of strange Olympic sports which will find you laughing or, at times, scratching your head. You’d be left wondering how weird can all of this get. What worse, it could as well have you questioning, why is the game even there in the Olympics in the very first place.

However, as of now, these games are a part of the Olympics 2016 and, we can do nothing about it. So, here we list down for you, the top 10 weirdest Olympic Sports of 2016:

#1. Race Walking

Remember we used to play a game where we used to race, but not by running; all we had to do was simply walk our way through the finish line. Who knew this would be one of the weirdest Olympic games we could ever try? The game has been a part of the Olympics since 1904, and it started off as a half mile walk, which has with the time, evolved. It is now a 20 km race for both men and women, and a 50 km race for just men.

So now if you are wondering why is it even a sport, the condition here, is the athletes should have one foot touching the ground at every point of time.

#2. Synchronized swimming

Now this is probably one of the weirdest Olympic sports on the list. Dancing and synchronization are all fine, but what this brings to you will have you stunned. It is something which is a combination of dance along with swimming and of course, synchronization. What makes all of this difficult is that one cannot touch the bottom of the pool, and simply make use of techniques such as sculling motions and egg-beater kicks to bounce back up.

#3. Hammer Throw

This is yet another game which we used to place as children! The game needs you to pick up an object and throw it to your full strengths at the farthest possible distance. Here, the object is the hammer, which is nothing but weights of varying kinds. The may weigh as much as 16 pounds for men, and 9 pounds for Women.

In order to throw the hammer farthest, the players swing the weight on the cord, when stationary for twice. After having done that, they themselves take a couple of full round rotations until they finally throw the hammer. The grounds for winning are laid back, just throw the farthest and win the game.

#4. Canoe/Kayak Slalom

A part of the Olympics since 1992, the kayak slalom is a game where the players have to navigate through the course of the river. While navigating, they need to cross the marked gates hanging from a wire strung across the river, paddling through the way.

#5. Equestrian Dressage

It is indeed horse dancing, but, as easy as it may sound, it is not. The game is nothing short of any other Olympic sport in terms of practice and difficulty. This game requires training for both the players as well as the horses and requires skills to make the horse perform smoothly and with ease.

The word Dressage means training in French, and this Olympic Sport is in its true sense, a display of training and unmatched efforts.

#6. Steeplechase

This Olympic sport is not just fun to watch but is equally fun to perform as well. Originally, this game was for horse riders, which happened around one town’s steeple to the other. Through their way, they crossed several barriers including streams of pools and stoned walls.

However, over the time, the game evolved and it was in 1896, that the game was rather transformed into a sport for Athletes at the Olympics. The game has a total of 28 barriers and is spread across 3,000 meters. There’s a total of 7 pools with water up to their knees throughout the game.

#7. Handball

Though not so weird in the sense that it has been a part of the Olympics since 1972, the game is not so popular. Similar to what soccer is, the game has been often described as ‘soccer with hands.’ A team of 7 players passes the ball with their hands, while the goalkeeper is to prevent the opposite team from scoring a goal.

#8. Trampolining

And if you’ve always thought that Trampoline is just for fun, well, you might want to rethink. This one among the weirdest Olympic Sports is here to prove you wrong. Someone will actually win a medal for dancing on the Trampoline while performing acrobatics.

Added to the Olympic gymnastics in 2000, Trampolining is a sport where the players jump and perform flips and dance, all at once; only, it is on a Trampoline. The Trampoline routine is composed of various flips, jumps, twists, rotations and a lot more. Athletes have a total of 60 seconds to get into action and warm them up. Once 60 seconds are up, they should begin their routine. At the end of it all, the player gets one ‘out bounce’ to finally land up still and close their act.

#9. Modern Pentathlon

Modern Pentathlon is one fierce game, and as the term ‘Pentathlon’ suggests, the game is a combination of 5 games, which are already a part of the Olympics individually. The 5 games, namely, include fencing, 200 meters freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, a 3200 meters run, and pistol shooting. The game basically comprises of the skills that one would need to face the enemy as a soldier.

One unique thing here is the fact that the players are not competing against each other. The players are, rather competing as individuals for the individual games. The sum total of their performance in all the 5 events will be their final score.

#10. Water Polo

Water Polo is in the Olympics, yes, WATER POLO! Think you could as well give it a try? Who knows!

Similar to Handball, the game has a team of 7, of which 1 is the goalkeeper and other 6 play the ball. Only, the game happens in a pool with a depth of 6 feet. Water Polo requires the players to be afloat, swimming through to pass the ball, and, use just one hand while doing that. The game is also that of direct contact, and might get physical. Though not confirmed, the game is said to have originated from Scotland, where, it was originally played as Water Rugby.

And that was about the weirdest Olympic sports in 2016. You can watch them and enjoy, or lay back and laugh!